Paul Stevens

Paul Stevens, born on May 5, 1961, served in the United States Navy for 6 years.

Rank/ position: E3 Boatswain's Mate.

Stationed/ deployed: North folk, VA and Philadelphia.

Paul said his father served in the Army for 6-8 years in Korea.

His role or job during his service was a firefighter on the flight deck.

When asked if he remembered his first day of service or boot camp and what it was like, He said the first day of boot camp in San Diego, CA was "alright." "I went to a school in Lake Hurst, NJ and it was kind of hard but I enjoyed it."

Paul served during Desert Storm. When the marine barracks in Beirut blew up, we were the first ships over there. During his time in the Navy, he traveled outside of the U.S. to Kingston, Jamaica and Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and inside the U.S. he traveled to San Diego, CA, North folk, VA, Philadelphia, and Lake Hurst, NJ.

His favorite or proudest memories from his time in the military was scoring high on the electronics section of his test, which is who the Air Force wanted.

Paul shared something he finds funny: "I was supposed to join the Air Force originally and they were supposed to set up an appointment for me. The Air Force and Navy offices were right next to each other and when a Navy recruiter saw I was waiting for a long time, he came out to talk to me and I ended up joining the Navy."

Those who stood out most in his memory while serving include: Irving Tso and a Navajo Indian soldier.

Paul mentioned being out to sea for so long before getting to a port again was the most challenging part of his service. He learned to put his faith in God and that still guides him today.